


Verdant Lusts

by sidebyside_archivist



Category: Star Trek: The Original Series
Genre: Alternate Universe, M/M, Starfleet Academy
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2005-04-01
Updated: 2005-04-01
Packaged: 2021-03-06 06:01:06
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,490
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25578481
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sidebyside_archivist/pseuds/sidebyside_archivist
Summary: At the Starfleet Academy, Spock changes Kirk's life and saves his career.
Relationships: James T. Kirk/Spock
Comments: 2
Kudos: 12
Collections: Kirk/Spock Online Festival (KSOF) 2004/2005, Side By Side Special Edition 6





	Verdant Lusts

**Author's Note:**

> Author's Note: This story was written for the "What if. . .?" Challenge, on the Winter KSOF. The title was taken from Hypatia's list of Bad Titles.
> 
> Note from LadyKardasi and Sahviere, the archivists: this story was originally archived at [Side by Side](https://fanlore.org/wiki/Side_by_Side_\(Star_Trek:_TOS_zine\)) and was moved to the AO3 as part of the Open Doors project in 2020. We tried to reach out to all creators about the move and posted announcements, but may not have reached everyone. If you are the creator and would like to claim this work, please contact us using the e-mail address on [Side by Side’s collection profile](http://archiveofourown.org/collections/sidebyside/profile).

"Starfleet Academy Mail Number: 7655903

To: Captain Henry J. Parthols  
From: First Year's Instructors

Performance Report: Cadet James Tiberius Kirk

Commander Jorge Holtorn - Advanced Mechanics 3: Cadet Kirk is less than enthusiastic about my class. His grades reflect his complete lack of interest and nothing seems to perk up this boy's attention. Perhaps some psychiatric evaluation is in order.

Major Frederic Kellert - Federation History: Cadet Kirk can only be described as unnerving. He only shows the most extreme disrespect and sleeps during all my classes. I must mention I'm familiar with some interesting forms of torture used in the old days that the captain should hear about.

Lieutenant Sarah Jansen - Interplanetary Diplomacy: I often receive hostile vibrations from Cadet Kirk. His aura feels very disturbed and, though I've attempted talking to him several times, he never opens up to me. His grades are permanently low which is, in my belief, a reflection of his unsettled spirit. If I had to guess I'd say this boy is in love.

Captain Henrique Walls - Martial Arts: James is without a doubt my best student. He's fast, intelligent and strong, everything a good fighter needs. He does seem to use some unnecessary extra strength sometimes, but I've learned that all great fighters need an occasional outlet for their pent up energy.

Major Howard Thompson - Military Strategy: Cadet Kirk is dangerous. I see in his eyes the cleverness great leaders need, but we can't control him and that's very risky. I must once again ask that he's removed from my class and that a surveillance team is put on him 24-7.

Captain Marie Lebrun - Non-human Etiquette: Cadet James Kirk is rude. That's the only definition I can give him. He acts arrogant towards me and always finds a way to ridicule me in front of my students. The only reason why I don't say I want him out of my class is because I'm very polite.

Lieutenant Leroy Biers - Quantum Physics: He's smart but he never seems interested in my class. He says it's boring no matter what I do to try to make my explanations more dynamic. I'm beginning to believe his problem has nothing to do with the subject itself. He simply doesn't like me. Nobody likes me.

General evaluation: Perhaps the Starfleet Academy isn't the right place for Cadet Kirk. There doesn't seem to be much future for him here."

~ ¤ ~

The office door swished open and Ensign Spock stepped out in a hurry. A few years ago he had loathingly acknowledged that he couldn't completely control his emotions as a Vulcan his age should, but every day of his life he worked to correct that deficiency. Right now though, his self-control had all but vanished and only one person could be blamed for that. He wished that person was himself so a quick suicide could solve the problem, but it wasn't. No, the person responsible for his current frustration, shame and intense anger was actually a full human. Possibly the most infuriating human ever born: James T. Kirk.

Spock systematically ignored the other students he passed in the corridors of the Fleet Academy. At this moment in time, he wouldn't be able to converse civilly with them anyway. All he wanted was to reach his cabin and lock himself in for a few hours of deep meditation. He needed to release some of the anger seething inside him or, with his inhuman strength, he might actually cause damage to something. . . or someone.

Upon entering an empty turbolift, Spock relaxed the rigid control on his features and removed his bonnet, wearily rubbing his head. His pointed ears were unusually bluish, the Vulcan version of 'blushing'. Pathetic, yes, but the young ensign was actually blushing after the severe dressing-down the Academy captain had just given him. A dressing-down he'd never had earned if it hadn't been for James Kirk.

At the recollection of that infernal name, Spock felt his control slipping yet again. The elevator opening stopped a more blatant display of the violent anger he felt. His emotional turmoil made him hasten his step, to the point where he had to backtrack a few meters because he'd simply passed his dorm room door. Yet another transgression to the codes of stoical Vulcan living that he could attribute to Cadet Kirk.

Once inside the safety of his cabin, Spock took a deep breath and forced himself to relax. Maybe things weren't so bad. Maybe he was overreacting. Truth, he'd received a harsh reprimand for doing something he didn't even want to do on the first place, but the captain did say the incident wouldn't go into his file and that he was a good student from whom great things were expected. Well, he didn't really put it on those terms but that was clearly what he'd meant with: "When you joined this Academy I expected you to become something like a perfect student and you're not far from that, but I didn't expect you to be this ruffian too! Now, I'm not reporting this officially, because I don't want my superiors thinking I'm running a kindergarten here. And this stunt was so absurd that's exactly what they'd think."

Shaking his head, Spock took a small green mat from his closet and carefully laid it out on the floor. He was about to kneel down when he heard the door chime sound. Why? Why did someone have to intrude upon him at such an inappropriate time?

Reigning in any errant signs of emotionality, Spock opened the door to find none other than James T. Kirk standing there, grasping the door case in exhaustion. The younger student looked utterly disheveled, drenched in sweat, with his face flushed a deep red. The boy tried to speak, but nothing came out as he was completely out of breath.

"I. . . mff. . ."

"Why do you not sit down and recompose yourself?" Spock suggested with only a hint of annoyance seeping into his tone.

Jim nodded and stumbled into the room, falling face down on the bed. He lay sprawled there for a few seconds, breathing heavily, then carefully pushed himself up and looked at Spock. The Vulcan had silently closed the door and now stood by the bed with his arms folded, just waiting for an opportunity to kick his butt out of the room. . . politely.

"Please inform me what brought you to such a state." Spock's tone was icy.

"I followed you after you left the captain's office, but you were going too fast for me. I couldn't catch you by the lift so I just ran up the stairs."

"You ran up twenty-seven floors?"

"Yeah, I. . . really needed to talk to you."

"Illogical. You could have waited for the next elevator."

"I know, I guess I wasn't thinking straight. Look, man, I know you're mad at me-" Jim's first attempt of apology was immediately rebutted by the Vulcan who saw it as a veiled insult.

"I am not 'mad'. Vulcans have no emotions."

"Right, right, okay." Jim waved a hand, clearly dismissing that statement. "Hmm. . . I know what happened today was totally my fault and you wouldn't have gotten involved if I hadn't been a real jerk and kept at you until you lost your patience-"

"I did not lose my patience."

"Hey, I'm trying to apologize here, okay? I know you're a perfect Vulcan, completely emotion-free and flaw-free and fucking fun-free. . . I'm not saying anything because I want to insult you, alright? So could you please not take offense for one minute and let me finish my apology?"

Spock sighed, realizing how recalcitrant he was acting. This, like any blatant show of emotions, was unbecoming to a Vulcan, and he once again felt ashamed of himself. Sitting down on the bed beside Jim, he quietly nodded his head, but kept his gaze on the floor.

"Listen, I really am sorry. You didn't deserve that reprimand. I should have received it alone. I. . . I didn't mean to get you into trouble, I just thought you might enjoy doing something fun for a change. You're always studying, you don't make friends with anyone--"

"I do engage in social interactions during class breaks." Spock's head shot up at the outrageous accusation that he was antisocial.

"Yeah, that's great. But have you ever tried talking to someone?" Jim countered, causing a fleeting frown to emerge on the Vulcan's face. "Yes, talking. It's not the same as 'engaging in social interactions', you know? Look, all I'm saying is that you have no friends here and I thought you'd like to be. . . you know, 'my' friend. That's what I was trying to do."

"If this is a ploy to acquire the answers to our Federation History homework--"

"Nah, I've already got them from Carol- I mean. . . I've already done my homework, all by myself, without cheating."

"I see. Do not engage in emotional displays over this, but I simply do not wish to befriend you."

"Gee, man, if you weren't a Vulcan that would've really hurt my feelings. No, wait, that 'did' hurt my feelings." Jim answered blinking at him. "What's wrong with me? Why don't you want to be my friend?"

"Because, as today's incident proved, you do not offer a beneficial influence. You tend towards a disruptive behavior. You possess a keen mind, yet do not seem to take anything seriously and. . . in essence you are far too human to be my friend." Spock tried to dissect the situation with as much precision as he could. "You befriend everyone indiscriminately, you are gregarious, something which would make me uncomfortable were I to spend any amount of time with you. I am aware of your fondness for jokes but I do not have the ability to perceive humor and logically I do not laugh, which is something you would probably find disconcerting. You are known to 'play the field' in regards to the female fellow cadets, but I am already. . . I believe humans would term it 'betrothed', so this behavior is unacceptable in my situation. We are simply not compatible and, therefore, we cannot be friends."

"Oh." Jim murmured, clearly impressed by the detailed explanation. He remained silent for a few seconds and Spock believed the human would now get up and leave at any moment, but instead Jim suddenly turned to him with a big smile. "I think we should be friends anyway. I mean, I know we didn't really start off on the right foot, but I promise you we won't get into this kind of trouble again. It was just a. . . a minor lapse."

"Did you not hear me, Cadet Kirk? We are almost exact opposites. We will not be able to suffer each other for more than a few weeks. Then there is the fact that such behavior as you displayed today appears to be the norm to you, instead of a 'minor lapse' as you classify it. It is not my place to judge your actions, Cadet, but I do not wish to become entangled in your disarrayed life in any way. I believe it would be pointless to invest our time in a friendship that is destined for misfortune."

"Oh, don't be so pessimistic. We could be 'the' best friends. I'm not such a bad guy, I just happen to have a very bad reputation. You should get to know me better before deciding we're 'destined for misfortune'. I mean, gee, that's a little harsh, don't you think? Besides your rep isn't all that clean either. The guys are always saying you're boring, that you suck up to the captain. . . But I think they're all wrong. I think you're a really nice guy; you just need a chance to show it. I've even seen you almost smiling a few times."

"If you strive to become my friend, offending me is not the best technique."

"Sorry. So. . . can't you give it a try? I promise I won't bite."

"I see as much reason for you to bite me as for us to be friends. But if you insist. . . "

"Yeah, I'm learning that's the way to go with you." Jim said draping an arm around Spock's shoulders. "Okay, so now I can tell you about my new plan."

"Is this one of your dubiously jocose remarks?"

"No, I'm serious. I do have a new plan. I mean, we have to get back at that double-crossing Cadet Johnson. If it hadn't been for him the captain wouldn't have caught us today."

"If we had not been tampering with the food processor's control station in the first place, we would not have been caught either."

"Hey, the guys needed some beer for the party. We had to help them. Didn't you feel great being everybody's hero for some glorious minutes?"

"That was not particularly appealing to me, no."

"Right. . . But at least you must feel a tiny little itsy almost insignificant bit of anger for Cadet Johnson, don't you? He 'did' turn us in."

"The only person I hold responsible for my misfortunes today is you, Cadet Kirk."

"I know you don't mean that, my friend. And call me Jim. So are you with me on the 'Revenge Plan'?"

"No. I do not wish to engage in any further rule breaking."

"I'll take that as a yes. Just trust me now. My plan is absolutely perfect. There's no way we'll get caught this time."

Jim smiled brightly and Spock was suddenly aware that befriending this deranged human was far from a logical decision. As had been his consent to help bring alcohol into the cadets' party. But James was uncannily accomplished at making people do what he wanted. The man was simply a natural leader and even Spock's logical and detached nature was not immune to his charms.

Of course, if Spock was honest with himself he would also admit that he had felt a particular thrill when Jim had asked for his assistance with his 'plan'. If Spock were completely ruthless in evaluating his motives, he might even admit to strange sensations in his abdominal area when being close to the man, as well as a desire to prolong the contact. But perhaps that was a little to much for a young Vulcan to come to terms with, so Spock simply decided James's strong personality was the only reason he was allowing the man to sway him yet again.

"You are certain we will not be found out?"

"Yep. Absolutely. Now listen up. Here's what we're going to do--"

~ ¤ ~

Two weeks later. . .

Cadet Kirk dashed down the hallways, desperately following his colleague, Ensign Spock. Behind them came the furious voice of their captain, promising immediate dismissal from the Academy when he discovered the culprits of the latest prank. Luckily, Spock had suggested that they wear masks and uncompromising black outfits for their antic, so they hadn't been recognized when the captain had fallen into their trap instead of Cadet Johnson.

As they turned a corner, Spock stopped so abruptly that James collided with his back and fell down flat on his ass.

"Ow, man! What the hell?"

"Silence! Listen." Spock knelt beside him and James heard the faint sound of voices coming from the corridor ahead of them. His heart skipped a beat when he recognized it was Admiral Viadert, the man responsible for the regulation of all the Academies affiliated to the Starfleet, currently coming in their direction.

"Captain Parthols is obviously losing control of this facility. I came for a routine inspection and now I have to help him track down some hooligans. This is not 'my' job." The admiral spoke to someone who didn't reply.

"Oh no! We're trapped. What do we do now?" Jim asked in near panic.

"We should turn ourselves in and plead for leniency." Spock suggested calmly.

"Are you out of your mind? We can't do that. We'll be expelled!" Jim banged his head on the floor behind him and was just about to start whining about the unfairness of life when he spotted the ventilation shaft directly above them. "There! Let's hide in there."

"James, this is silly--"

"Just help me up!" Jim raised his voice a notch and the Vulcan gave up the argument. The two boys hadn't left each other's side since they'd agreed to become friends and now their relationship, though still fresh, was already pretty well established. For example, it was mostly understood between them that when Jim got into this kind of frenzied mood, trying to debate with him was completely pointless.

It wasn't hard for Spock to raise James to the entrance of the shaft. And the young cadet was incredibly deft at opening the security locks, so only a few seconds later they were both crawling down the smooth metal surface of the dark tunnel, headed God knows where.

At first creeping through the shaft was fairly easy, aside for the constant flow of refrigerated air that seemed to seep into James' very bones. But as they progressed the cold slowly became unbearable and the poor human started shivering violently.

"You do not look well." Spock commented softly.

"I'm fine. We'll be out of here soon anyway. Don't worry about me."

Kirk had promised Spock they wouldn't get caught this time and even if he came down with the worst flu ever after this, he was going to make sure he kept that promise. Jim boldly forced himself to keep moving forward against the freezing current, but after over twenty minutes of crawling they still hadn't found a way out of the tube. The extreme cold made his eyes burn and the cadet had to keep rubbing at them in order to see. His whole body felt stiff and his movements became more and more labored as they proceeded. Spock breathed heavily behind him but other than that the coldness didn't seem to be affecting him at all.

Kirk was just about to suggest they turn back the way they'd come, when suddenly the floor fell away under his hands. There was a downward intersection in the shaft, which was impossible to see in the dark, and James' movements were so slow he couldn't stop himself from plunging head first through it. Spock still tried to grab Jim's legs, but the tube offered no purchase and he only ended up being dragged along.

They fell down together and James' panicked yells echoed across the entire Academy. He felt Spock pulling at his legs and suddenly found himself enveloped by the strong arms of the taller boy. Jim looked over his shoulder and saw that Spock was staring down intently. He faintly noticed how comforting it was to feel Spock's warm body against his back when he was so cold. 'At least I won't die freezing', He told himself chagrined.

Just as all seemed lost to Kirk, he felt the arms around him tighten up and Spock turning their bodies around. Jim didn't understand why his friend was bothering to find a comfortable position when they were just about to die anyway, but when Spock finished moving he braced both feet against one side of the shaft and his back against the other. The perfectly smooth metal shaft offered nothing to help break their fall, but pushing both legs and shoulders into the walls with inhuman strength, Spock managed to bend them slightly and Jim noticed with a surge of joy that they were indeed slowing down.

He wanted to speak, but decided it was best not to break Spock's concentration. Jim held tightly onto the arms around his chest and closed his eyes. He felt their speed gradually diminishing and anxiously held his breath.

They were still descending quite fast when Jim was suddenly shaken into opening his eyes. He realized they'd come to a stop with him on top of Spock. Slowly turning his head around, he noticed the metal panel beside them had thin slits that allowed some light into the tube, which meant that was probably a way out of there.

"Ow." The Vulcan said quietly under him.

"What happened?"

"We have reached the bottom end of the ventilation shaft."

"Oh God! And we're alive!"

"It appears so."

"Spock, you saved us." Jim clumsily turned in Spock's lap and wrapped his arms around his friend's neck. "You saved us. Thank you, thank you, thank you. Oh God, I'm so sorry I almost killed us. I'm so sorry."

"James, calm down." Spock seemed to hesitate then awkwardly hugged Jim back. "Calm down, we are quite safe now."

Kirk rested his head on Spock's shoulder and breathed deeply for a whole minute before sitting up again.

"I'm sorry." He said in his normal tone of voice, without the hysterics that had just overtaken him. "I screwed up everything. You really must hate me now. . ."

"You know I do not."

"Right. You're a Vulcan."

"No, I am your friend." Spock spoke matter-of-factly as usual, but his words betrayed unexpected emotions.

"Thanks." Jim answered, locking eyes with the other boy. He suddenly felt like a cheat for everything he had done. He'd been trying to get Spock's attention, even impress him for a while now. But the Vulcan seemed completely immune to his attempts. Asking for Spock's friendship had finally resulted in something, but it was wrong. It was a lie. Jim had told Spock he wanted him as a friend when he really wanted so much more. He'd offered friendship to get close to the elusive Vulcan and now he felt like he was betraying something very special. "Spock. . . I think I should tell you something."

The Vulcan nodded and continued to observe him impassively.

"I. . . I haven't been completely honest with you."

"Explain."

"I told you I wanted us to be friends, but. . . I lied."

"You do not want to be my friend."

"No. I mean yes. I--I don't know."

"If you do not know, than I cannot possibly understand you. Analyze your emotions before relating them to me." Spoke instructed quietly.

Kirk nodded and closed his eyes, focusing on himself. How did he feel? Or better, how could he explain his feelings to a Vulcan? He was a human used to dealing with emotions and even to him they seemed confusing. He was almost sure he was in love with Spock. Almost sure. Love isn't an exact science; that's the whole problem. Spock would never understand. And even worse, Spock would never feel the same way about him. That thought was way too painful and Jim had been brushing it off for a while now. Ever since he'd decided to try to win Spock over he'd pushed that idea aside, but now it was coming back to haunt him. Perhaps he should have dealt with it before. Perhaps he should have given up this foolishness before he'd almost gotten them killed. Perhaps he should have accepted sooner that it was pointless to fight for something he'd never have.

Jim opened his eyes again, with a bitter sense of defeat weighting at his heart, and found Spock patiently staring back at him. His expression hadn't changed at all. It was the same as it always was, what people usually described as apathetic, but which Jim suddenly decided should be called serene. He looked into Spock's eyes and found wisdom, understanding, acceptance. He could see a lot in those expressive eyes. They'd been the first things that had called Jim's attention to the Vulcan. How could no one else see the depth of a Vulcan soul when their eyes say so much? Could there really be no emotion in a creature with such eyes? No, there had to be.

Gathering up his courage, Jim opened his mouth to speak. But before a single word was said the realization of where he was came crashing down and silenced Jim once again. Here he was, sitting across Spock's lap, balancing himself with his grip on the Vulcan's upper arms. Spock's hands were settled gently on his lower back. The ventilation shaft was so confined it forced them to stay closer than they'd ever been before. They could barely see each other's faces in the dim light of the tube, but it was enough to take James' breath away.

"Speak, Jim." Spock ordered, calmly using that nickname for the first time and making Kirk smile even as he shook on the inside.

"Okay. But I'm not sure you'll like what I have to say."

"Speak." Spock nodded without blinking.

"Alright. I. . . Spock, I--I like you. I mean really, I like you. You know, as more than just a friend. I'm actually a--attracted to you." Jim dropped the bomb and waited with baited breath.

Spock, however, reacted as he always did, or didn't. "I understand." He said coldly. "Why did you say you lied?"

"Well, I already liked you before and I only became your friend because I wanted to get close to you."

"So you do not wish to be my friend anymore?"

"No, I still want to be your friend, but I want. . . you know, more."

"Then I would not say you lied. You simply withheld part of the truth."

"Yeah, whatever." Jim answered impatiently. Why was the damn Vulcan so concerned about semantics when he'd just divulged such a revelation to him?

"I believe I can forgive you for concealing part of the truth. . . since I concealed something myself."

"W--what do you mean?"

Spock leaned forward and his face was a mere inch from Jim's when he whispered. "I do not think of you as just a friend."

Jim felt a shiver run down his spine at those words, but before he had the time to recover, Spock claimed his mouth in a searing kiss. Thin lips closed over his own and Kirk suddenly discovered that a Vulcan's mouth has a more saline taste to it than a human's, but yummy nonetheless. He whimpered and tentatively grabbed the front of Spock's shirt. But the Vulcan was far ahead of him with one hand holding the back of Jim's neck and the other firmly stroking his buttocks.

Kirk hesitantly opened his mouth and was quickly invaded by an eager tongue. For some reason he had assumed Spock had never kissed before, but by the way his mouth was being deftly devoured it became clear that the other boy was actually quite experienced. He dreamily savored the long kiss, but when Spock's hand moved from his ass to the front of his trousers, Jim hastily jumped back with a startled gasp.

It was all happening too fast, but Spock didn't even seem to notice Kirk's reluctance. Long, elegant fingers took advantage of Jim's new position to forcefully open his trousers and start fondling the front of his boxers while the boy still pondered dizzily over this unexpected turn of events. Just a minute ago Jim had been worried about being a bad friend to the honest and pure Vulcan and now it seemed like he was the one being debauched here. Spock's hand stroked him harder and Kirk shivered, understanding that, just because Spock had a tight control over his instincts, that didn't mean they weren't strong.

He felt Spock trying to snake a hand inside his underwear and decided he'd been passive for long enough. James lunged back at the other boy kissing his mouth and trailing his lips down Spock's neck, while fervently tearing his shirt off. He jerked his head away again when Spock achieved his goal and grabbed Jim's cock in a firm grip. It would have been impossible not to yowl at that. But he wanted more. Leaning back, Jim hastily discarded his own shirt and trousers, then straddled Spock's legs and tried to open the other boy's pants as well.

Spock kept pumping him with all the precision a Vulcan could muster and Jim couldn't keep his hands from trembling long enough to undo the other's zipper. Finally giving up with a grunt, he began kissing Spock's face repeatedly. "I want to touch yours too. Please."

The Vulcan kissed him back, then quickly opened his own pants and pushed them down for his lover. After that, he removed his hand from Kirk's underwear and nibbled softly on his right ear.

"Sit up, Jim." He commanded pushing at his bottom.

James obeyed without thinking and howled again when Spock's mouth found his nipple and fastened his lips to the small bud. The Vulcan used the distraction to sneak a hand into Jim's boxers and started rubbing the firm ass, skin to skin. Before long, a single finger snuck inside the hidden crevice, exploring. Jim moaned with abandon, grabbing Spock's hair, and threw his head back. . . just as the metal panel beside them burst open.

The world seemed to stop then as both boys stared at their captain's baffled face outside the shaft. Jim thanked the heavens he was still wearing boxers, though the situation didn't look any less amoral because of them.

The older man stared at them for what seemed like an eternity and neither of the boys dared move. Finally, the captain took a deep breath and looked down at his shoes."I'm gathering all the recruits on Deck 17 for an inspection. Be there in five minutes." He said, the struggle to sound normal obvious in his voice. The panel was slammed back into place and the captain's retreating footsteps were heard.

Jim and Spock sat frozen for another second before slowly starting to disentangle themselves. They tried to get dressed, but the dark and cramped space made it very difficult.

"Think we'll be in trouble for this?" Jim asked, putting on a shirt that felt a little too tight.

"I do not believe there is anything in our regulations book about sexual relations inside ventilation shafts."

"Right. That's good."

A minute later, as they stepped out of the shaft, and Jim noticed Spock's shirt was too loose, the thinner frame not filling fabric meant for a wider chest. "At least we got the pants right." He shrugged, slightly embarrassed at their situation.

"We have four minutes to change back into uniforms and make an appearance on Deck 17."

"Okay, let's run then. I'll meet you there."

~ ¤ ~

Exactly four and a half minutes later, Cadet Kirk entered the large deck, which was already completely crowded with students standing in formation. He spotted Spock in the front row and was trying to decide where to hide himself when the Admiral called out to him.

"Nice of you to join us, Cadet. I hope we're not keeping you from any other engagement."

"No, sir. I had a free schedule today." Jim answered petulantly and the Admiral's face flushed with anger.

"Well then, perhaps you can explain why you are late."

Jim hesitated, but the Admiral didn't give him time to think of an answer. "How about these two, Captain?" He asked pointing at Kirk and Spock. "Could they have been the ones who threw you in that jelly pit?"

The Captain coughed uneasily and refused to meet Kirk's gaze. "I--I don't believe they could have possibly done that."

"They were the only ones to arrive late. I'm assuming they needed time to go back to their cabins and change while all the others were already in uniforms. They're the best suspects we have."

"No, sir. I. . . ran into them before coming here, so I can tell they were engaged in o-other activities." The Captain assured him quietly.

"Fine. Then we have no suspects. No one will speak up here. In this case I would suggest an exemplary group punishment. They will all stay here, doing pushups until the curfew bell sounds."

Despite all their training, the whole body of students gasped at that threat. Even the Captain seemed shocked at the harshness of the punishment and Jim began to seriously consider a confession. He couldn't let everybody else pay for his mistake, but Spock spoke up first.

"If I may, sir. On behalf of my colleagues, I would like to volunteer myself to take the punishment and to serve as an example for them."

The admiral eyed Spock severely as Kirk bravely walked over to his new boyfriend's side.

"I offer myself as well, sir. We can both serve as an example for the others." Jim said standing so close to Spock he had to resist the urge to touch him.

"Very well. It does make sense that the only recruits that arrived late should be the ones to face the discipline. And after the others see what you two will go through they'll definitely think twice before breaking any more rules." The Admiral said after a second of thought. He was a stern man and his ominous words unsettled Jim for a moment.

The young cadet nervously glanced up at his cool-headed friend and Spock gave him his permanently peaceful look. The Vulcan's eyes now held a spark of reassurance that not many people would be able to recognize, but which Kirk absorbed like a sponge. No matter what the Admiral said or did, all would be well as long as Jim could look into those eyes.

They stared at each other for a small eternity, but their moment was brusquely interrupted when their captain shoved himself between them.

"Forgive me, sir, but I don't think it would be appropriate to punish the only cadets of whose innocence I'm certain. The real culprits might be led to believe that they can get away with anything, as long as they find a scapegoat to take the blame. May I suggest, sir, that we release the cadets now, with a fair warning of severe consequences to all if we hear of any other antic being pulled on the base."

"That sounds far too lenient to me."

"With all due respect, admiral, I believe I'll actually lose the regard of my men if I start dishing out unfair punishments."

"Captain. . . Oh, very well then." The admiral agreed, looking obviously displeased.

As he walked to the front of the formation to dismiss the students, the captain grabbed Kirk and Spock's upper arms and dragged them to one side of the deck.

"Now you two listen carefully." He said in a low harsh voice. "It would be perfectly acceptable if I expelled you from the Academy after what I've seen."

"But, sir--" Jim started to object, but didn't get very far with it.

"Quiet! I'll hear no explanations. You, Cadet Kirk, are a slacker. You don't apply to your studies, you're always pulling those childish pranks and now you're corrupting one of my best cadets." He scolded, angrily pointing at Spock. "The only thing that kept you here for so long is your father's influence. But now it's over, I've had enough of you--"

"I am sorry, sir, but that is not fair." Spock firmly interrupted the tirade, making both Kirk and the captain look at him in shock.

"What?"

"You assessment of the situation is inaccurate, sir. Cadet Kirk is not 'corrupting' me. On the contrary. He has not pulled any 'childish pranks' since I began spending my time with him. He has been studying, writing his own papers and doing his chores. With some insistence from me, yes, but he has been much more responsible nonetheless. Also sir, I take offense in being called 'one of your best cadets' since I am no longer a cadet, I am an ensign. And lastly I must remind you, sir, that in this Academy there is no rule forbidding relationships between students and we are, therefore, well within our rights."

The captain gasped for words for a second and blushed like a beet before speaking in whispered urgency. "You two were doing. . . you know. . . 'that', in the ventilation shaft!"

"Which may be considered a private area, sir. No one ever goes inside those shafts, so the possibility of us being discovered by someone and causing a scandal was quite remote. Honestly, sir, I do not believe that engaging in sexual activities while safely within the ventilation shafts may be considered a public display of obscenity."

Jim muffled a chuckle and forced himself to speak seriously. "Maybe if I hadn't moaned so loudly you wouldn't have caught us either, sir. I'll try to be more silent next time."

"There will be no next time!" The captain yelled before he could stop himself.

Several of the students still present turned to give them startled looks and Spock raised both eyebrows as the poor captain rubbed at his eyes tiredly.

"Alright, listen to me. I don't care what you two do in your spare time, but I will not tolerate any more of that sort of behavior again. I won't argue about how absurd and unnatural it is for two 'men' from different races to do that kind of thing, but if you 'must' then it will be in your own quarters. If I see or hear of the two of you doing anything remotely associated with sex outside of your cabins, I'll personally ensure your immediate dismissal from this Academy. Am I understood?"

Both boys nodded hastily and Kirk sighed in relief. It was clear to him that he'd finally pushed the captain too far and only his association with Spock had saved him this time. The Vulcan had actually been quite annoying in the last couple of weeks. He was always forcing Kirk to finish all of his chores before having fun, forbidding him from cheating on the tests, insisting he should study at least two hours a day and, worst of all, he kept acting as the voice of reason pointing out every possible negative repercussion to Jim's plans. No wonder Kirk had been so well behaved lately: even his free time was now mostly occupied by harmless games of chess, which he only learned to enjoy after discovering that he could spend hours staring dreamily at his Vulcan friend without being seen, since Spock concentrated his entire focus on the chess board.

But the truth was, his new habits were already changing the way the teachers treated him. They were now taking him more seriously and Kirk had to admit he enjoyed spending a whole class without receiving any reprimands. Perhaps being a good boy might not be so bad after all.

Bringing out his most charming smile, Kirk decided he should try to meliorate his image with the captain as well.

"We'll behave more discreetly sir, you have my word. And thank you for getting us out of trouble with the Admiral."

"I only wanted to be fair. You were several levels from the incident and pretty busy as far as I could see. It's obvious you two couldn't have pulled that stunt." The captain said before waving a hand at them. "Dismissed."

Spock turned first and started walking away so fast Kirk had to jog a little to keep up with him.

"What?" Jim asked worriedly when he saw the tense look on Spock's face.

"Obvious. He believes it is 'obvious'. The only thing that is obvious is that logic is not one of the strong points in the human species. I must get away from the captain now before I start correcting him and end up turning us in."

"Right." Jim chuckled. "So what do you want to do now?"

"We need to finish our Quantum Physics homework."

"Oww, man! Can't we do that later?"

"James, during the last two weeks you have earned praises from our teachers; your grades in both Advanced Mechanics 3 and Interplanetary Diplomacy have dramatically improved and you haven't received any form of punishment or reprimand from any of our superiors, which is something close to a miracle according to some of the lieutenants. Do you not find it coincidental that the first time I decide to indulge your 'brilliant ideas' we almost get ourselves killed?"

"Well--"

"If you want to be with me, James, we will keep doing things my way. We will still go out with your friends, have parties and maybe we can even pull an occasional prank, but only after our homework."

"Alright then." Jim acquiesced glumly.

They kept walking together in silence and Jim immersed himself in a small amount of shame and a much larger amount of anger. Spock had been his boyfriend for less than an hour--at least Jim thought they were together-- and he was already scolding him. If this was how their relationship was going to be, Kirk could tell it probably wouldn't go very far. He knew Spock was making many concessions for his sake, allowing himself to be dragged to all sorts of social events which cadets usually loved, but Spock obviously didn't care for at all. Not to mention today's escapade, which had been so ill planned that only Kirk's winning smile and Spock's crush on him could explain the Vulcan's approval of it. But still. . . Jim wasn't sure he wanted to be with someone who kept bossing him around like that. It just didn't seem worth it.

He shook his head and looked up to find Spock studying him with an unusual glint in his eyes. Jim had already learned to read a lot in those eyes, but this was definitely a different mien, one he didn't remember ever seeing before.

"What is it?"

"I was thinking. . ." Spock seemed to hesitate, but only for a second. "If we finish our homework fast enough we will still have plenty of free time this afternoon to finish what we started earlier today."

"You mean--"

Spock leaned over and spoke in a deep voice. "You know what I mean."

Then and there Kirk was sure he'd never forget what that specific glint in his Vulcan's eyes meant. He gulped audibly and stared at Spock for another second, then suddenly turned and sprinted down the corridor. He needed to get to his cabin and be done with that damn homework right away. Had he really been thinking Spock wasn't worth it? Had he lost his mind?!

~ ¤ ~

"Starfleet Academy Mail Number: 9482757

To: Captain Parthols  
From: First Year's Instructors

Performance Report: Cadet James Tiberius Kirk

Captain Jorge Holtorn - Advanced Mechanics 3: Cadet Kirk has shown remarkable improvement over the last few months. He's become one of the best students in my class and I believe it's perfectly possible that he'll get to be my top student before the year's end.

Major Frederic Kellert - Federation History: Cadet Kirk went through some impressive changes. He hasn't slept during my class in months and he even answers my questions and joins on the class debates. I'm, of course, very happy with the new and improved Cadet Kirk, though I must express my disappointment for not being present when the discipline sessions took place.

Lieutenant Sarah Jansen - Interplanetary Diplomacy: Absolutely wonderful. Our boy has found his soul mate. His aura now glows in gold and pink. His vibrating spirit is an enthusiasm to all those around him. His grades are high, propelled by the power of his happiness and love.

Captain Henrique Walls - Martial Arts: Something is different about Cadet James. He's still an amazing fighter, but I've noticed he lacks some of that stamina that used to be his mark. He's been more precise is his fights, never using any more strength than necessary and always opting for the quickest and most painless way of defeating his opponents. I've asked him about these changes and he said he's been doing a lot more workout in his cabin so he doesn't come to classes with so much energy, but I'm not sure I believe him. I ask for a physical evaluation to be done on Cadet James. I'm thinking maybe he's sick.

Major Howard Thompson - Military Strategy: Cadet Kirk's strategy has changed. He now pays attention to my classes and tries to be better behaved. I think he realized I was onto him and now he's trying to get me off track. But I see him watching me; during the classes he's always looking at me when I speak, absorbing every word I say. He's trying to learn what I know, to find my weaknesses and use them against me.

Captain Marie Lebrun - Non-human Etiquette: I'd never known Cadet Kirk could be such a gentleman. His performance in my class has been absolutely outstanding. If he keeps up like this soon people will be confusing him with a member of the royalty.

Lieutenant Leroy Biers - Quantum Physics: Cadet Kirk is very different now. He's been more participant during classes, both asking and answering questions and even helping out when another student is having trouble understanding something. He's very clever. Much cleverer than I am. Well, everybody is cleverer than me.

General evaluation: Cadet Kirk should be used as an example for all the other students. Perhaps he should be given the Academy's Top Cadet Award this year."


End file.
